Improvement in railway-car springs



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GEORGE ELLIOT, OF ST. LOUIS, MISSOURI.

IMPROVEMENT IN RAILWAY-CAR SPRINGS.

Speciiication forming part of Letters Patent No. 119,129, dated September 19, 1871.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE ELLIOT, of the city and county of St. Louis and State of Missouri, have invented a certain Improved Spring for Railway Gars` of which the following is a specification: v p

My improvement consists principally in, first,

.combining with a case containing diamond formed springs, curved longitudinally, and a cover sliding vertically thereon, and guided by ribs or corrugations, ot" a follower which rests upon the upper spring, and by which the springs are'depressed; and, secondly, in connecting the leaves together by nipples on one sheet, entering dimples upon the part' of the leaf, follower, or case in contact therewith.

Figure lis a perspective viewof the spring, the cap being removed and an under view of the same being given to show the follower. Fig.

2 is a longitudinal section of the spring, to which a scale is annexed. In springs of the usual size the cap is made about foiuteen inches long and seven or seven and a half inches wide at the middle, and about three and one-fourth inches deep, the box or case being about iive inches deep. The leaves are shown in unloaded condition. Fig. 3 is a perspective view of a box and cap having a somewhat modified form from that shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Each side has a single guide-rib and groove upon the box and cap, and the box has a ninnber of interior vertical guide-ribs for the spring-plates or leaves. Fig. 4 is an under perspective view of one of the leaves. l

A is the box or case, having a somewhat diamond form, and in Figs. 1 and 2 shown with corrugations a, which serveto strengthen the sides and guide the cap in its movement on the box, and mayserve, in some cases, to give side support to the springs. B are orifices to allow the escape of dust. C is the cap, whose sides have corrugations, c, tting the outer side of the cor-` rugations a. D are studs on the top of the cap, that enter the under side of the bolster and hold it in position on the cap. E is a cruciform follower that is cast with the cap, and which rests upon the top of the upper leaf F of the spring. This leaf has a teat, f, entering a dimple or hole, e, in the follower, and a dimple, e, entered by a teat, f, of the spring-leaf G. The ends of the leaf G have teats f upon the under side at each i end, entering dimples e in the ends of the leaf H, which has a central dimple, e, receiving a teat, f, on the leaf I. The leaves J K are similar to those F G, and those L M similar to H I, except that the central teats extend downward, that of M entering a dimple in the bottom of the case. The teats f and dimples e hold the leaves in their -relative positions with each other and with the .case and cap. The spring-leaves may be associated together in couples, as F G, H I, as shown, or the whole spring may be formed of plates or leaves placed singly, as G H, K L. The object of associating them in couples is not only to increase the strength, as this might be done by increasing the thickness of the plate, but rather to render the movements of the spring less rapid, as I have found by experience is the case. The reason of this appears to be that there is considerable friction between the surfaces of the leaves, which checks the speed of their movements without adding proportionally to their iniiexibility,

and by the above means the action of the springs may be regulated. I make the leaves about twelve inches long, one inch wide at the ends, and four and a half inches at the middle, and with a longitudinal curve. They may be threeeighths of an inch thick, more or less.

In the modiiication shown in Fig. 3 the sides of the case and cap are plain, except that the case has exterior guide-ribs a2 andthe cap-grooves c2 to receive these ribs, and the case has interior guide-ribs a3, that would act as a side guide to the springs to prevent them getting out of place. The ribs a2 and a3 and the grooves c2 perform the same fimctions as the corrugations of Fig. l in guiding the cap in its vertical movement on the These springs, like other metallic car-springs, are placed beneath the ends of the bolsters supporting the car.

I claim as my invention- The combination and arrangement of the case or box A, cap or cover O, and follower E with the diamond-formed 'leaves F G H, 85e., when the said leaves have corresponding teats f and dimples e, all substantially as described.

In testimony of which invention I have hereunto set my hand. l

-GEORGE ELLIOT.

Witnesses:

SAML. KNIGHT, Y R. T. BRADLEY. 

